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An owner of five tanning salons in Idaho is diversifying her businesses with the launch of a clothing store in downtown Lewiston.
Iconic is at 618 Main Street. It is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday to Friday and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday.
The company offers ‘trendy and affordable’ jeans, shirts, dresses, sweaters, jewelry, hats, shoes and handbags, usually in sizes small to extra large, its owner said. Michelle Roby.
The debut of the physical store comes two years after she started selling clothes at two Electric Rays tanning sites, one at Lewiston Mall and the other in Hayden, Idaho, two years ago.
In August, it expanded further with online sales, just before it opened downtown just before Thanksgiving.
In addition to in-person purchases at his new store, Roby’s online customers can also receive their orders by mail or pick them up at the store, whichever suits them best.
Some of the online orders come from as far away as New York State.
“I don’t even know how they found my online store,” said Roby, whose other tanning centers are in Moscow, Coeur d’Alene and Meridian.
Based on what she’s seen elsewhere, Roby said she expects a wider variety of businesses to join Iconic in downtown Lewiston soon.
“You go somewhere else and downtown is so booming,” she said. “We don’t have that here yet, but I feel like it is happening.”
Lewiston Airport adds amenities for overnight cruise ship passengers
A waiting room will be a priority project of a newly formed Cruise Ship Hospitality Committee at the Lewiston-Nez Perce County Regional Airport.
The “Explorer’s Room” will be a “quiet space” where “guests can relax in comfort” while learning more about the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley, said Gary Peters, chairman of the board of directors of the airport, in an email. The venue will be located in the space that once housed Map Travel, a travel agency.
A free shuttle will be provided for passengers to visit downtown Lewiston or other attractions, Peters said.
“These passengers expect a very high level of service to accompany the five-star experience while they are on the ship, so we want to provide this service to them from the moment they get off a flight or the moment they are on the ship. they arrive at the airport to board a flight, ”said Peters.
The committee will spend the coming weeks fine-tuning the concepts so that upgrades can be completed by March 1, when cruises from Portland, Oregon, and Vancouver, Wash. To the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley resume after their departure. normal winter hiatus, he said.
It is too early in the process to have an estimate of the costs of the improvements, said Peters.
“We expect most of the work to be done by volunteers, with help from airport staff when needed,” he said. “We’ll have a better idea once the committee can get together and come up with some ideas. “
Cruise ship passengers present an important opportunity at the airport, Peters said.
“The (Lewiston) airport could accommodate up to 20,000 additional travelers this year alone due to cruise passengers using United Airlines additional service… to Denver as well as our Delta Airline service to Salt Lake City,” said Peters.
The hospitality committee is chaired by Laurie Wilson, member of the airport board of directors and director of sales and catering at the Hells Canyon Grand Hotel in Lewiston.
The other committee members are Michelle Peters, President and CEO of Visit Lewis Clark Valley; Jennifer Holley, Sales Representative, Inland Cellular; Kathy Schroeder, member of Lewiston City Council; Becky Cawley, real estate agent at Coldwell Banker Tomlinson in Lewiston; Friends of the Airport members DeAnn Scrabeck and Doug Black; and Diane Dennis, Lewiston Airport Office and Finance Manager.
House supports efforts to eliminate Washington state’s mandatory tax on long-term care
Lewis Clark Valley Chamber of Commerce urges community members to collect signatures for Washington state initiative that, if passed by voters, would allow its residents to accept or reject a new tax on long-term care at any time.
Initiative 1436 needs 400,000 signatures by Dec.31 to qualify for the ballot, according to an email update from the chamber last week that contained a link to a place to get petitions .
“Put the choice of health care back in your hands,” the update says.
If the initiative passes, it would eliminate a mandatory 0.58% payroll tax on the wages of all Washington employees effective Jan. 1 and instead give Washington residents the option of joining the plan. State or provide a private alternative, depending on the update.
The tax has been criticized by many, including Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, the region’s largest private employer.
One concern is that the payroll tax is imposed on everyone who works in Washington, even if they live in other states and would not be eligible to receive benefits unless they move to Washington. .
In addition, the state’s maximum lifetime benefit is $ 39,500 per person for services such as nursing home stays, personal home care, and assisted living. That amount, tax critics say, won’t go very far, given that the average annual cost of a shared retirement home room is about $ 115,000 in Washington.
SEWEDA has a new executive director
Dovie Willey took on a new post on Wednesday as executive director of the Southeast Washington Economic Development Association.
She is replacing Dawn Smith, who is retiring, said Asotin County Commission Chairman Brian Shinn, who is also Chairman of the Board of Directors of SEWEDA.
Willey most recently served as Director of Grants at SEWEDA.
Smith will be on SEWEDA’s payroll until the end of December, helping Willey in the leadership transition, but has a number of vacation days, Shinn said.
Starting in January, Smith will be available to the association as needed as a paid consultant, he said.
Like Smith, Willey will also be the Regional Development Officer for Asotin County, based in his Clarkston office.
The nonprofit group works on projects primarily in Asotin, Whitman and Garfield counties. Its largest source of income is state tax dollars earmarked for such organizations in every county in Washington.
Washington Grain Commission retains three area farmers
Three Southeastern Washington farmers have been re-appointed to their state’s Grain Commission boards.
Brit Ausman, a fifth generation farmer who grows spring wheat and spring barley near Asotin, will continue to represent District 3 for wheat. Ausman has served on the board of directors since 2012. District 3 includes Columbia, Walla Walla, Garfield and Asotin counties.
Gary Bailey, a wheat farmer from St. John, represents Whitman County, the state’s largest wheat producing county. Bailey was appointed to the board in 2016 and served as chair from 2019-2020.
Ben Barstow, a Palouse barley farmer and commission vice-chair, represents the state’s southern barley district. This district includes the counties of Whitman, Asotin, Garfield, Columbia, Walla Walla, Benton, Franklin, Klickitat and Yakima.
Ausman, Bailey and Barstow are among the 10 members of the board of directors. The board was established in 1958 by the Washington State Department of Agriculture with the support of farmers in eastern Washington. The commission strives to improve the profitability and long-term competitiveness of Washington’s small grains and small-grain producers through research, marketing and education.
An economic development group assesses the impact of the pandemic on businesses in the region
MOSCOW – The Partnership for Economic Prosperity is seeking information on the impact of COVID-19 on regional businesses in a survey in pepedo.org.
“The pandemic has hit businesses disproportionately, and we want to use solid, real-time data to help policymakers allocate their American Rescue Plan Act allocations and develop long-term strategies for attraction, retention and business growth, ”said Gina Taruscio, general manager of the partnership, in a statement.
The Partnership for Economic Prosperity is the Latah County economic development partnership between Moscow City, Latah County, University of Idaho, Avista, Moscow Chamber of Commerce and business partners.
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